November 7, 2019 MEMORANDUM To: Board of Commissioners From: Lisa Sprinkle, Marketing Coordinator Re: November Staff Report Executive Director (Mary Ellen Wuellner) • The past month has been spent conducting interviews for both the deputy director for planning

and development, and the administrative assistant position. By the time of the board meeting on November 14, we hope to have offers out and accepted on at least one of the two positions.

• We are also recruiting, internally first, for the part-time volunteer coordinator position. Kristin Tetzlaff leaves us to take a full-time volunteer coordination position at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago. It has been a pleasure having Kristin on staff as she has brought some much-needed consistency to the volunteer coordination position, along with new ideas and a great positive attitude. We will miss Kristin but wish her all the best.

• Staff held two meetings near the end of October to collect feedback on the draft strategic plan. Four individuals total attended the meetings. Due to the low turnout, we plan to place placards in the preserves in an attempt to reach more individuals before we finalize the plan for board approval, which is now scheduled for the December meeting.

• Please reserve the evening of Thursday, December 5, 6pm at the Museum for a budget study session. We propose setting this as a recurring budget study session meeting date on the annual board calendar – two weeks prior to the regular December meeting.

Business and Finance (John Baker) • Prepared and submitted the “Black Box” advertisement for the District’s tax levy. Drafted the

annual tentative appropriations ordinance and mandated public notice documents. • Drafted the Forest Preserve Friends Foundation budget for review and revision by Mary Ellen,

Lisa, and Jarrod. One primary focus of the draft budget is fundraising contributions and grant matches for the following projects: Lake of the Woods Peninsula, Willow Pond, KRT Accessibility Project, and the Interpretive Center Site Plan. FPFF will review and comment at its November 12 meeting with final approval anticipated at the December 10 meeting.

• Participated in the Deputy Director first and second round of interviews and discussion. • Received $43,210 for the Foundation from the Conservation Reserve Program. Per the March

agreement approved by the Board, the Foundation serves as the land manager for the District’s CRP properties and as such is eligible for the CRP payments just received.

• Sold 2,161 bushels of soybeans for $19,375, the first of the 2019 harvest from the Middle Fork farm managed by Larry Roberts. We expect additional loads of soybeans and corn in the next few days.

• Continued following up on capital projects and related contracts: executing the agreement on the HLIC Roof for which work is set to begin on November 7; received an updated quote on KRT railroad ties that now includes prevailing wage rates; currently working on insurance coverage requirements for the removal of one barn at Middle Fork West Maintenance; and waiting on

Koeberlein Construction for contract approval and setting the timeline for the Homer Lake drainage project. The Middle Fork Activity Center Roof is now complete, as is the snow guard installation on the Administration roof. The schoolhouse roof replacement is underway.

• With the IT committee, met via web-feed with Craig Williams of ClientFirst to initiate the audit of District IT services and needs. Mr. Williams will meet with us again on November 25 to tour District sites for the purpose of assessing our IT infrastructure.

• Requested that Goldstar Energy, an energy management firm, secure competitive quotes for gas and electric service for all District Ameren sites, including options for renewable energy sources. The District currently holds an energy contract (ends this December) secured through Gulf Plains Energy in cooperation with the Champaign County Chamber of Commerce. The District is seeking better pricing and more renewable sourcing than the current agreement permits.

• Discussed with Mike Fry and Tom Pike future District HVAC and roofing needs to assess the adequacy of capital funding to meet these needs.

• Attended a timely and helpful PDRMA contracting and insurance workshop at Decatur Park District.

• Revisited the 2020 District budget timeline to prioritize program budgeting before further implementation of the GFOA budget criteria. Sought estimates of staff time worked for particular program areas and for other program costs, in order to begin the work of crafting program budgeting examples from 2018 actual and 2019 projected income and expenses, and to recast the 2020 proposed budget using this method.

Human Resources (Dara Edgington) • Kristin Tetzlaff, Volunteer Coordinator [Extraordinaire], will be leaving the District on

November 13 to accept a full-time position with the Lincoln Park Zoo. Kristin has been a dedicated member of the forest preserves team for more than three years, and has made several invaluable improvements to the District’s volunteer program during her time here. She will be greatly missed, but we wish her all the best in this next chapter of her career. To begin the search for Kristin’s backfill, the Volunteer Coordinator role has been posted internally.

• In order to improve the overall healthcare literacy of the District, as well as educate employees on their benefits options, HR conducted Benefits 101 training sessions on October 17 and 22. Approximately 40% of benefits-eligible employees attended this voluntary training and, thus far, the feedback has been positive. HR’s intention is to offer these sessions each year prior to open enrollment.

• The Annual United Way Campaign is officially underway! Special thanks to Mary Beck for overseeing the campaign, visiting each site to educate employees regarding their giving options, and gifting us all with the fruits of her excellent baking abilities. Last year, CCFPD won the award for highest participation rate in the public sector and are shooting for two years in a row!

Volunteers (Kristin Tetzlaff) • October saw a handful of volunteer events with our natural resources department that focused

on Point Pleasant. These events were well attended and helped ensure we met our mark for the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation’s grant requirements for volunteer work. For

recruitment, I attended the East Central Illinois Master Naturalist Graduation to present on volunteer opportunities. I also attended the Office of Volunteer Program fair at University of Illinois late last month to hopefully expand our college-aged volunteers.

• It is with mixed emotion that I put in my notice as the Volunteer Coordinator earlier this month. After over three years with CCFPD, I will be relocating to a position that is closer to my extended family in Chicago. It has been a pleasure working here over the past years, and I have been fortunate to get to know many wonderful staff and volunteers. I plan to leave this position with full details on how to continue the program without much interference, as well as leave opportunities for the incoming volunteer coordinator to continue to make improvements and grow the program as a whole.

• In early October, the District hosted its annual volunteer dinner. The event was well-attended and held at Salt Fork Center at Homer Lake. The theme was “conservation”, and the bulk of the party supplies purchased were eco-friendly including wooden utensils, paper table cloths, bamboo napkins, and compostable plates. We also gifted the volunteers with reusable metal straws, as well as had some eco-friendly raffle items. Our guest speaker presented on how technology is used to research endangered species and gave our volunteer pool ideas for citizen science opportunities along with powerful apps that they can use in the field. I believe both staff and the volunteers who attended had a nice time.

Marketing (Lisa Sprinkle) • We ran three MTD ads, from October 15-

November 15, promoting workplace giving to benefit the forest preserves through United Way and University of Illinois’ Charitable Fund Drive.

• Lisa and Jarrod Scheunemann promoted the University of Illinois’ Charitable Fund Drive by attending the agency fair on October 22, and the Lunch and Learn talk on October 29, at the Facilities and Services department on campus. We talked with several people that were very interested in the District and love using the preserves!

• Matt Kuntz and Lisa presented at the International Dark Sky Association Annual Meeting in Tucson, AZ on Friday, Nov. 8. Our presentation focused on how we have engaged the

community in nighttime activities and what the District has done, and will continue to do, to promote astrotourism.

• Social Media Monthly Numbers FACEBOOK +/- INSTAGRAM +/- TWITTER +/-

CCFPD 3,446 +68 1,154 +49 513 +2 KRT 2,690 +15 119 +5 MGP 2,577 +34 773 +24 177 +2 HLIC 1,086 +17 GC 1,268 +6 223 +2 61 +1

Grants (Jarrod Scheunemann) • Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation recently awarded a land acquisition grant to

CCFPD for the purchase ($76,500) and stewardship ($10,000) of a new parcel of land along the Salt Fork. Kudos to Mike Daab and Brian Taylor, as their quality work on the application and good relationship with property owners made this possible.

• The Lumpkin Family Foundation awarded $16,000 to the Friends Foundation toward conceptual designs for a new nature center at Homer Lake Forest Preserve. Many thanks to Pam and Mary Ellen (application review, led site visit) and Barb (identified evaluative process) for their help and input to develop a successful application.

• Please encourage attendance for the KRT Sleepy Creek Winery fundraiser on Friday, November 15. It is our biggest fundraiser for the trail. The more people who attend the more match dollars we earn!

• More than twenty Illinois Marathon participants have given $430 to the KRT efforts through the Illinois Marathon registration page so far. If you know any runners who would be interested in running for a good cause, please connect us with them.

• Rumor has it that IDNR will finally release the $57,571 that is owed to us from the backlogged 2014 public museum grant.

• In October, we submitted a $25,000 request to the Reeve Foundation to support the installation of the dock as part of the Lake of the Woods Peninsula OSLAD match.

• Many thanks to everyone who attended the Prairie Rivers Network banquet to honor our very own River Steward of the Year Award winner, Fred Newport. District staff, commissioners, and volunteers filled nearly two tables at the event.

Planning and Construction Department (Mike Fry) • The construction department has completed two of three shelters scheduled for completion this

fall - one each at Homer Lake, and Middle Fork. Currently, construction is underway on the third which is located at Lake of the Woods. Originally, the shelter was going to be placed on the existing concrete slab where the Rayburn Purnell shelter was located. However, due to its deterioration and safety concerns, it was moved across the street. With savings from the project, we were able to pour a new slab that should last another fifty years. This should allow for a more family-friendly and safe experience by preventing children who may be using the swings from crossing the roadway to get to their guardians.

• This time of year is one of our busiest as we race to finish projects before year end and winter weather hits. Recently we have assisted several departments with infrastructure repairs and shut down procedures throughout the preserves.

Natural Resources (Mike Daab) • Natural Resources staff has been taking advantage of the last opportunities to apply foliar

herbicide for invasive woody shrub management throughout the preserves over the last month. • We have begun the fall prescribed fire season, with small burns at Buffalo Trace and River

Bend Forest Preserve completed so far. • Ground preparation, including final mowing and raking of debris, has been ongoing at our two

current prairie restoration sites at Lake of the Woods. Staff has also been working to make sure planting equipment is in good working condition so we are ready to plant once purchased seed is delivered.

• Michael Daab attended the Central Illinois Municipal Officials Association on October 24 at the Wheelhouse in St. Joseph, where he spoke about the natural areas along the Kickapoo Rail Trail and provided updates on construction, engineering, and amenities projects.

• Native seed collection has been ongoing throughout the forest preserves. Lake of the Woods Golf Course (Chris Edmondson and Joie Torres) • The roller coaster of weather continued in October. We pretty much experienced it all, from an

October 1 high temp of 91 degrees, to nearly 6 inches of rain on October 26, to accumulating snow and 22 degrees on October 31. Needless to say, all conditions that are not terribly favorable for golf. We had 2,050 players in October, which is about average for the month over the past five years. This number is reasonable considering we only had 20 playable days in the month. Our revenue for the month was $36,122.52, which is slightly below average over the past five years. This is directly related to the ability to be open and have carts available. We had five days that we did not open for play in October, while carts were disallowed on several other days due to wet conditions.

• We held our 3rd annual Hubie Cup Golf event on October 4-6. This event, named in honor of former Golf Professional Dave Huber, rewards our “Top 24” players from the previous calendar year. Each time a golfer plays in one of our events (Tournament, League, Association, Weekend Game), they receive points for participation and place of finish. These points are accumulated throughout the year and those top 24 point-getters are rewarded with the end of the year event. We host a steak dinner and pairings party on Friday night, followed by 18 holes of golf on Saturday and Sunday, with varying formats in a competitive, but enjoyable environment. The teams are divided up by player

handicap and captained by staff. We finished it off with a pizza party and results when play concluded on Sunday. This point chase has really helped to increase interest and play in leagues and events and is an added promotional tool. Team pictures from the event are above.

• With the declining weather at this time of year, October is the end of outings and tournaments for the golf season. We held the Mahomet Lions Club outing as well as our Two-Person Better Ball event this month. The Better Ball event was reduced to one day, due to torrential rains on Saturday of the scheduled event. This hurt the numbers somewhat, and we are looking to move the tournament up a few weeks next season. Below is the list of outings and tournaments held in 2019, with comparisons to 2018. Outings were down this year, as a result of 2018 course conditions. We are working diligently to increase outings – attempting to gain back some we have lost and attracting new golf outing business for 2020.

Outing # of

Players Total

Revenue Actual

Merchandise Radliff MBA Outing 22 $940.00 $240.00 Carle EMS 24 $1,370.00 $192.00 Big Brothers/Big Sisters 88 $3,312.00 $672.00 Slumberland 17 $627.49 $159.00 Bulldog Open 89 $4,620.50 $712.00 Urbana Firefighters Local 1147 96 $4,505.00 $768.00 Police Protective Association 108 $5,263.00 $864.00 Golden Glove Grasshoppers 36 $936.00 $0.00 Jason Smitley Memorial 92 $3,660.00 $280.00 Mahomet Christian Church 71 $2,130.00 $0.00 Edelman Electric 39 $1,901.60 $731.60 Champaign Rotary 52 $1,976.00 $380.00 County Girls HS Tourney 25 $500.00 $0.00 Mahomet Chamber of Commerce 80 $3,755.00 $640.00 Bulldog Gridiron Club 44 $1,967.00 $352.00 Mahomet Lions Club 45 $1,710.00 $360.00

2019 Totals 928 $39,173.59 $6,350.60

2018 Totals 1075 $45,618.76 $6,729.63

Difference -147 ($6,445.17) ($379.03)

Tournament # of

Players Total

Revenue 2-Person Season Opener 118 $8,850.00

Naughtin Open 36 $2,520.00

Parent-Child 43 $1,720.00 CIJGT 25 $500.00 Junior Open 35 $580.00 Club Championship 46 $920.00 Big Merchandise Scramble (1) 90 $9,000.00 Big Merchandise Scramble (2) 72 $7,200.00 Better Ball 70 $3,500.00

2019 Totals 535 $34,790.00

2018 Totals 587 $33,190.00

• Joie and staff aerated the greens following the Hubie Cup event. They pulled cores on the front 9 greens and punched the back 9 greens. Pulling cores is necessary every couple of years, and while they take much longer to heal, they make for fantastic playing conditions moving forward.

• Michael Dale and staff planted trees in the center island of the parking lot. This is the first step in rehabbing that area which has become an eyesore in recent years. We are still working to add lighting as well as a border and rocks to avoid washouts and vehicle incidents.

• We have begun the process of setting up the golf simulators in the Clubhouse. We plan to open for simulator play in mid-November and have already filled our 2-Person league, which begins in December.

• Finally, I (Chris) was honored to be asked to be a part of the interview team for the new Deputy Director of Planning and Development. We have several quality candidates and I am looking forward to the next round and seeing who will be joining the CCFPD team in this capacity.

• Golf course maintenance successfully completed the aerating process and top dressing the greens. The crew emptied the irrigation system at the course, winterized the pump station and assisted in winterizing the irrigation system at the botanical garden.

• Greens, tees and fairways have received their final mowing for the season. The maintenance crew is currently mulching leaves, collecting leaves on the course and picking up any debris falling from the trees. The crew will be fertilizing the greens, tees and fairways for our winter application.

• All equipment and golf carts will be getting serviced as part of our winter maintenance. Museum and Education Department (Barb Garvey and Pam Leiter) • Champaign Unit 4 School District is changing around its curriculum to better meet the Next

Generation Science Standards and to allow teachers more autonomy in choosing field trips. As a department we are no longer doing Prairie Adventures with them. We thought this would affect field trip numbers for both cultural history and environmental education but we are happy to say that it has not. Environmental education is seeing slightly fewer schools from Champaign, the museum is seeing a greater variety of topics explored from Champaign, but we have filled our program schedule for this fall!

• Sandy Osborne and Marina Montez have had great success this fall with homeschool programs. Two Civil War field trips were full on October 10 and 29. More specialized trips are planned in the future.

• We had record sign-ups for the three-day Wilderness Living Skills workshop, and several people on the waiting list. Quite a few attended from the Chicago area. The word is really getting out about the workshop. (Participants shown at right).

• The new third-Saturday hike program series was a success this month, with 15 people enjoying a nice fall hike. One person suggested offering quiet hikes.

• The MGP hosted two special tours this month, one from Mahomet’s PEO, the other from the State Farm Retirees Association with a special tour given by Guy Fraker, noted Lincoln historian.

• The MGP hosted a book-signing event and lecture with Kristin Hoganson, UI professor and author of The Heartland on October 21. The book details the global impact of the Midwest throughout history using Champaign County as a starting point.

• The MGP provided training for and hosted the History Harvest students for a session of scanning and photographing local material on October 16. History Harvest is a collaborative community history project from the University of Illinois Public History program. This year’s topic was North Champaign and the Hoskins Archive provided a rich resource.

• The MGP had a very successful Harvest Fest this year. Pat Cain got pumpkins donated at cost or less from the Pumpkin Patch and Crowley Farms. Mike Fry and Tammy Bruehl helped with the hayrack ride, and more than 450 people went home happy. (Below right)

• Old Timey Halloween was a great success again this year also, with 185 participants all making slime! (Below left).

• Barb Garvey led participants from the University of Illinois’ Radical Illini conference (from a UI Press book by the same name) on a guided tour of the 1968 exhibit on October 4. MGP was featured on their program as a conference activity.

• Barb Garvey and Katie Snyder took a small exhibit about Katherine Chesebro, called One Woman’s Story, to the Archives Bazaar at the Urbana Free Library on October 26. The Bazaar is a collaborative effort of area organizations that hold archival materials in the area hosted by the Champaign County Historical Archives and timed to coincide with the CU Folk and Roots Festival.

• Mark Hanson completed the Northern States Conservation Center online course entitled, The Problem with Plastics, about the care and inevitable deterioration of those materials, on October 15.

• Jennifer Grove completed the MGP Collections Procedures Manual which will serve as a guide to the processing and treatment of museum collections going forward. This was a painstaking, two-year effort designed to ensure precision and consistency in collections processing from here forward.

• The MGP was featured in the News-Gazette column Inside Out on October 13 in the article, “Mahomet Museum of the Grand Prairie, a Short Ride To Lots Of Fun.” The Champaign County Museums Network has agreed to provide articles for the newspaper for as long as they are interested.

• On October 21, WAND broadcast its 4, 5, and 6pm news shows live from the MGP using the Lincoln and Grand Prairie Story exhibits as backdrops, and interviewing Pat Cain, Katie Snyder and Barb Garvey. This was part of a series that WAND did from cultural history locations.

• Barb Garvey gave a lecture, History of the Harvest, at Windsor of Savoy on October 22. • Barb Garvey attended the Steering Committee meeting of the Abraham Lincoln National

Heritage Area on October 23. • Stacey Clementz attended the Optimist Club meeting, on October 17 at Riggs Brewery, to thank

them for the grant we received last month which will help us provide discounted summer camp and public program fees for underserved audiences.

• Katie Snyder presented a poster session at the Association of Midwest Museums conference in Grand Rapids Michigan on October 4, entitled “50 years of Centennial High School and the Museum of the Grand Prairie: An Integrated History, Culture and Art Event”, detailing the Boneyard 2019 collaboration with high school art students surrounding the 1969 exhibit.

• HLIC staff assisted Kristin Tetzlaff with the District’s annual Volunteer Appreciation Dinner. • Pam Leiter attended the Board Bootcamp session on topics pertinent to non-profit boards and

board-staff relations. It was presented by the Community Foundation of East Central Illinois, Parkland College Foundation, and Clifton Larson Allen.

• Pam Leiter researched internet options and gathered internet speed test results for Homer Lake and Middle Fork, and gathered internet speed test results at Lake of the Woods for comparison. The IT Committee is in discussion with a possible vendor to improve tech efficiency at remote sites.

Lake of the Woods, River Bend, Sangamon River Forest Preserves (Doug Sanders, Tammy Bruehl, Michael Dale) • Staff took two 5-gallon buckets of old batteries into Interstate Battery of Champaign for

recycling. These batteries consisted of used AA, AAA, C, D, 6 Volt, and several lead acid batteries from alarm panels and emergency light fixtures. In total, approximately 100 pounds of batteries were recycled. Interstate’s normal drop off fee is $2 per pound but they waved all fees since National Recycling Day is coming up on November 15.

• In compliance with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), Tammy Bruehl provided operations and golf maintenance staff with online training for automotive lifts. This training was provided by the Automotive Lift Institute (ALI) and consisted of four training modules and an exam. Each participant was provided a lift operator’s certificate upon successful completion.

• Michael Dale completed the two month Master Naturalist Intern Certification Program. This program is provided by the University of Illinois Extension to educate individuals in the state’s natural history, environment, and conservation issues. Throughout his training, Michael provided weekly updates to the operations and garden staff and said in the end it was a good program. He stated it was very educational, a great opportunity to network with professionals, and thought it would assist him in recruiting volunteers in the Botanical Garden.

• You may have noticed staff have put out the fall decorations! The majority of the pumpkins, squash and other items were harvested from the Discovery Garden and a small plot west of the natural resource building. Several of the park visitors have stopped staff to comment on the fall decorations.

• All seasonal rental facilities, restrooms, water fountains, and irrigation lines have been winterized. Thanks to golf course staff for assisting garden staff in blowing out the irrigation line at the Botanical Garden.

Middle Fork River Forest Preserve (Matt Kuntz) • Middle Fork staff has winterized all facilities and water lines inside the campground for the

winter season. Accomplishing this goal was not easy due to the near white-out blizzard conditions that day.

• October camping was a little slower this year due to the unfavorable weather conditions that seemed to show up on weekends.

• Middle Fork staff continue to remove dead or dying ash trees throughout the preserve user areas.

• Nearly a dozen new native trees were planted by Middle Fork staff this fall in the user areas. These are mostly ash tree replacements.

• Eric Roth, our new full time employee, attended the National Association of Interpretation certification program held by Touch of Nature in Southern Illinois. Upon the completion of the class, he is now a certified interpretive guide. During his workshop, Mr. Roth designed and implemented a Dark Sky interpretive event, landing him the highest score in the class.

Homer Lake (Brian Taylor) • I attended the following events: Prairie Rivers

Network annual dinner, our own Volunteer recognition dinner, and the Strategic Plan public meeting. Prairie Rivers recognized Fred Newport as the River Steward of the year for all of his volunteer hours spent on Homer Lake removing trash and invasive vegetation along the shoreline.

• We had a very large oak tree blow down in yet another high-wind event. We had been concerned about the health of the tree but we did not expect it to come down. The roots were practically non-existent.

• Betty Reinhold has been monitoring blue bird nesting boxes here at Homer Lake for over 30 years and she reported that 205 birds were fledged this season. I can remember when 75 fledglings was considered a great year.

Kickapoo Rail Trail (All) • We replaced several stop signs at the intersections along

the Kickapoo Rail Trail, and we installed two solar-powered blinking stop signs at Main Street in St. Joseph, at the request of the Village.

• We received an offer from the Sun King artist to sell the sculpture to the District at a substantially reduced price. Originally offered at $19,500, the Sun King could be a

permanent fixture on the KRT for $14,000. Steven Maeck is looking to raise quick funds to relocate an art installation in Iowa. The Foundation will discuss the offer at its meeting on November 12. In the meantime, we have put out the word in hopes of attracting an art donor or donors.

• The KRT User Survey is now completed and we have received a final draft of the plan from the UI Office of Park and Recreation Resources. A copy will be forwarded to each board member for your review. The UI OPRR staff have agreed to attend the board’s December meeting to present on the plan.

District Cultural Competency Initiatives (All) • Pam Leiter and Urbana Park District staff, Elsie Hedgspeth, presented on Cultural Competency

in Parks at the Eastern Illinois University’s Programming for Leisure Agencies class. • Lisa Sprinkle video-taped Stacey Clementz doing several Nature Minute videos, which will be

posted periodically on Facebook. Other features, such as Golf Minute and History Minute are also planned. This is another attempt to expand our reach to diverse audiences.

• This year’s Lincoln Lecture Series is off to a great start with Richard Hart speaking on Diversity in Lincoln’s Springfield Neighborhood on October 6, and Kent Tucker speaking on Lincoln at Home on October 27. Smile Politely covered the series with an article this month as well.

• Pat Cain presented a Teacher’s Workshop on “From Civil War to Civil Rights” at the Conference on Illinois History at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum on October 4.

• Pat Cain, Katie Snyder, Joie Torres, Dara Edgington, and Pam Leiter participated in Civity: Train the Leaders Workshop at the University YMCA on October 11.

• Katie Snyder attended the Teen Summit at CU Solutions to investigate how to best serve this population, one which we rarely reach.

• Katie Snyder met with the Housing Authority of Champaign County to arrange programs for children the HACC serves next summer.

• Katie Snyder joined the board of Three Spinners as the Director of Events and Community Engagement in October.

• Pat Cain, Barb Garvey, Mary Ellen Wuellner, and Pat Miller (Museum Advisory Committee) attended the first annual retreat of the American Association of Museums’ Facing Change initiative. The retreat, at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum held on October 16, helped participants assess their understanding of diversity and possibility for change using a book called Filter Shift, How Effective People See The World.

Sustainability Committee • The Sustainability Committee is working with a UI Institute for Sustainability, Energy and

Environment class. They have chosen to work with us on two projects: o Analyze Greenhouse Gas Emissions for the Champaign County Forest Preserve District, a

sustainability data analysis to calculate annual greenhouse gas emissions for years 2017 – 2019. Peter Goodspeed is working with two students on this.

o Educational messaging to involve the public in climate change action. Stacey is working with three students on this; Taskeen Khan, Michael Gates, and Autumn Anzell. They are going to focus on creating additional activities for students to do after they attend a field trip to the Forest Preserve District.